Method and System for Planning and Running Video-on-Demand Advertising

ABSTRACT

A method and system for planning and running video-on-demand (VOD) advertising includes a planner for planning advertising campaigns and an ad selector for running selected advertisements from selected ones of the campaigns. The campaigns are associated with household demographic classifications, video content category categories, household geographic locations, and/or video viewing times. In response to a viewer requesting a video, the selector selects the campaigns corresponding to the demographic classification associated with the viewer, the content category of the requested video, the geographic location associated with the viewer, and/or the viewing time at which the requested video is viewed. The demographic classification is determined by using an identifier of the viewer&#39;s set-top-box. The selector may select the campaigns corresponding to the content categories of the requested video. The content categories are determined by using an identifier associated with the requested video.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.17/222,520, filed Apr. 5, 2021, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 16/718,927, filed Dec. 18, 2019 (now U.S. Pat. No.10,999,618), which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/873,561 (now U.S. Pat. No. 10,547,889), filed Jan. 17, 2018, which isa continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/819,718 (now U.S.Pat. No. 9,906,825), filed Aug. 6, 2015, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/701,865 (now U.S. Pat. No. 9,136,956),filed Nov. 5, 2003. The content of the foregoing applications are herebyincorporated by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a method and system for planning andrunning video-on-demand (VOD) advertising.

Background Art

Video distribution systems may be configured to enable a serviceprovider to distribute videos for viewing by viewers in response torequests for the videos by the viewers. Such a video distributionservice is known as video-on-demand (VOD). In VOD, video distributionsystems include a communications network which enables communicationsbetween a service provider and viewers. The provider is typically acable service provider and the network is typically a cablecommunications network. A viewer communicates a request for a video overthe network to the provider. In response to the request, the providercommunicates the requested video over the network to the viewer.

Viewers view requested videos on display devices such as televisions.Each television has a communications network transceiver device such asa set-top-box (STB). The STBs connect the respective televisions to thenetwork on the viewer side of the network.

The provider has video servers which connect to the network on theprovider side of the network. The video servers have access to storedvideos which the provider may offer to the viewers for viewing. Inresponse to a request from a viewer to view a video, a video serverprovides the requested video to the network for distribution to the STBof the television of the viewer requesting the video. The viewer thenviews the requested video on the viewer's television.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a method and system forplanning and running video-on-demand (VOD) advertising.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method andsystem for running VOD advertising in which selected advertisementsaccompany the requested video. The advertisements are selected as afunction of at least one of the content category of the requested video,a demographic classification corresponding to the neighborhood of theresidence from which the viewer requested the video, the geographiclocation of the residence from which the viewer requested the video, andthe time at which the viewer requested the video.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a method andsystem for planning VOD advertising in which an advertiser's campaign ofadvertisements is selectively associated with at least one of thecontent categories of videos available for viewer request, demographicclassifications corresponding to the neighborhoods of the residencesfrom which viewers request videos, the geographic locations of theresidences from which viewers request videos, and the times at whichviewers request videos.

In carrying out the above objects and other objects, the presentinvention provides a method for planning VOD advertising to accompanyvideos when the videos are delivered by a service provider to viewers inresponse to requests for the videos by the viewers. Each video has atleast one content category. Each viewer is located at a respectiveresidence. Each respective residence is in a neighborhood and has ageographic location. Each neighborhood has a corresponding demographicclassification.

The method includes defining advertising campaigns each having at leastone advertisement. The method further includes associating eachadvertising campaign with at least one content category, at least onegeographic location served by the service provider, at least onedemographic classification, and at least one interval of time.

The method may include identifying the advertising campaigns which areassociated with at least one content category matching the contentcategories of a video, a demographic classification matching thedemographic classification corresponding to the neighborhood of theresidence at which a viewer is located, a geographic location matchingthe geographic location of the residence at which a viewer is located,and an interval of time matching the time at which a viewer requests thevideo. At least one advertisement of at least one of the identifiedadvertising campaigns may then be identified as being eligible foraccompanying the video. The matching may be done using rule basedassociations which are either determinative or predictive.

Further, in carrying out the above objects and other objects, thepresent invention provides a VOD system and an associated method. TheVOD system includes a display device having a set-top-box (STB). The STBhas an identifier and is located at a residence in a neighborhood. Aserver is connected to the STB. The server transmits a video to the STBupon receiving a request for the video from a viewer of the displaydevice.

A selector is operable for using an identifier indicative of the videoto determine content categories of the video. The selector is operablefor using the STB identifier to determine both a demographicclassification corresponding to the neighborhood of the residence and ageographic location of the residence. The selector selectsadvertisements from a group of advertisements as a function of at leastone of the content categories of the requested video, the demographicclassification of the residence, the geographic location of theresidence, and the time at which the request for the video is made. Theserver transmits the selected advertisements with the video to the STBfor the viewer to view on the display device.

The advantages accruing to the present invention are numerous. Forinstance, the present invention matches content and target audience. Thepresent invention solves the problem of advertising effort being wastedon uninterested viewers in a general VOD viewer audience by providingselected advertisements to VOD viewers.

Advertisers will benefit from the present invention as small advertisersthat do not have the budget to advertise to a general audience are nowable to literally buy a part of the audience for a popular show, and tobe the sponsor for the show for that part of the audience, so that allthe advertisements shown to that part of the audience are from the oneadvertiser.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a video-on-demand (VOD) system inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of the logical structure of thedatabase of the campaign planner subsystem of the VOD system shown inFIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of the logical structure of the housedatabase of the advertisement (ad) selector subsystem of the VOD systemshown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)

Referring now to FIG. 1, a block diagram of a video-on-demand (VOD)system 10 in accordance with the present invention is shown. VOD system10 includes a data communications network 12. Network 12 connects acable service provider 14 to viewers such as viewers 16 and 18. Network12 enables two-way communication between provider 14 and viewers 16 and18 in households to enable the provider to provide videos for viewing bythe viewers in response to viewer requests. For instance, viewer 16communicates a request for a video over network 12 to provider instance14. In response to this request, provider 14 communicates the requestedvideo via network 12 to viewer 16. Network 12 also distributestelevision signals in an analog radio-frequency format to viewers 16.

Viewers 16 and 18 have their own display devices such as televisions forreceiving and viewing requested videos provided by provider 14. As such,viewers 16 and 18 view requested videos distributed by provider 14 onthe display devices, i.e., televisions. Each television has a respectivecommunications network transceiver device such as a set-top-box (STB) 20and 22. STBs 20 and 22 connect the televisions of viewers 16 and 18 tonetwork 12.

Viewers 16 and 18 may be located in a local geographic area such as aneighborhood. In this event, a local data communications network 24connects network 12 and viewers 16 and 18. Networks 12 and 24 may have ahybrid fiber coax (HFC) architecture. As such, network 12 includesoptical fiber for internal communications and an optical fiber 26connects networks 12 and 24. Cable connections 28 connect local network24 to STBs 20 and 22 of viewers 16 and 18.

Provider 14 has a controller 28 and a video server 30. Controller 28connects to network 2 to enable provider 14 to communicate with viewers16 and 18 and to control the video programming provided by the provider.Video server 30 has access to data storage 32 for storing videos andadvertisements. Provider 14 communicates with viewers 16 and 18 to offerthe videos for viewing by the viewers. Video server 30 connects tonetwork 12 to transmit a video requested by a viewer such as viewer 16to STB 20 of the viewer's television. Viewer 16 then views the requestedvideo on the viewer's television. As a result, VOD system 10 isconfigured to enable viewer 16 to view “videos-on-demand” (“VOD”) fromprovider 14.

In accordance with the present invention, provider 14 includes acampaign planner subsystem 34 and an advertisement (ad) selectorsubsystem 36 which together forma system for planning and running VODadvertising. Campaign planner 34 enables provider 14 to set-upadvertising campaigns for different advertisers. Each advertisingcampaign has one or more advertisements (i.e., ads). The ads in theadvertising campaigns are available for distribution to viewers 16 and18 in accordance with defined rules. Video server 30 is operable todistribute the ads of the advertising campaigns which satisfy the rulesto viewers 16 and 18 along with requested videos.

Campaign planner 34 enables the rules for the advertising campaigns andthe ads to be defined. The rules restrict which advertising campaignsand which ads in those advertising campaigns are to be presented toviewers 16 and 18 during the viewing of requested videos. The rulesidentify the ads which are eligible for distribution to a VOD vieweraudience and, accordingly, enable targeted ads to be presented to theVOD viewer audience. To this end, the rules restrict the availability ofthe ads of advertising campaigns to a viewer's television as a functionof at least one of the content category that a requested videosatisfies, a demographic classification corresponding to theneighborhood of the residence in which the STB of the viewer'stelevision is located, the geographic location of the residence in whichthe STB is located, and the time at which the requested video runs onthe viewer's television.

Ad selector 36 applies the rules to identify the advertising campaignsand which ads in those advertising campaigns are to be presented toviewer 16 during the viewing of a requested video by the viewer. Inorder to apply the rules for the particular viewing of the requestedvideo by viewer 16, ad selector 36 determines the identity and contentof the requested video, the geographic location of the residence inwhich STB 20 of the television of viewer 16 is located, the demographicclassification corresponding to the neighborhood of the residence inwhich the STB is located, and the time at which the requested video isto run on the television for the viewer.

In order to determine the identity and the content of the requestedvideo, ad selector 36 obtains the asset identifier of the requestedvideo when viewer 16 requests the video. Using the asset identifier, adselector 36 identifies the requested video and the content category orcategories that the requested video satisfies. Each eligible video hascontent which falls into at least one content category. Contentcategories may include, for example, audience categories such as kids,teens, general—male, general—female; genre categories such as sports,news, soaps, cartoons, drama, biography; and particular contentproviders such as HBO™, ESPN™, Discovery™. As an example, a requestedvideo of a football game would fall into the sports category and perhapsthe general—male category as well.

Ad selector 36 uses an identifier of STB 20 of the television of viewer16 to determine the geographic location of the residence in which theSTB is located. STB 20 identifier, such as a “unit address” associatedwith the STB or a serial number of the STB, enables ad selector 36 todetermine geographic location information such as the street address,the ZIP area code, and the ZIP+4 area code of the residence (i.e.,household, business site, public/private facility, etc.) in which STB 20and, consequently, viewer 16 are located. To this end, ad selector 36has a house database 38 which stores a list of the identifiers of theSTBs serviced by provider 14 and stores a corresponding list of ZIP andZIP+4 area codes associated with the residences in which the STBs arelocated.

Based on the geographic location of the residence (i.e., household) inwhich STB 20 is located, such as the ZIP+4 area code of the household inwhich the STB is located, a demographic classification corresponding tothe household in which the STB is located may be determined. Thedemographic classifications are provided by a marketing provider and maybe stored in a list in house database 38. The demographic classificationcorresponding to the household in which STB 20 is located is indicativeof demographic characteristics of the neighborhood in which thehousehold is located. As viewer 16 is likely to belong to the householdin which STB 20 is located, the determined demographic classification ofthe household in which STB 20 is located is likely to be indicative ofdemographic characteristics of the viewer. It is noted that, instead ofZIP+4 area codes being used to obtain the demographic classification,similar types of information such as “census block” data may be used toobtain the corresponding demographic classification.

Using the demographic classification corresponding to the household inwhich STB 20 is located, the geographic location of the household inwhich the STB is located, the content category or categories of thevideo requested by viewer 16, and the time that the requested video isrun on the viewer's television, ad selector 36 applies the rules definedin campaign planner 34 to determine which advertiser's campaigns andwhich ads in those campaigns are to be eligible for that viewing of therequested video by the viewer. Ad selector 36 then selects certain onesof the eligible ads for presentation to viewer 16 during the viewing ofthe requested video. Video server 30 inserts the selected ads atappropriate insertion points in the requested video. Viewer 16 thenviews the selected ads and the requested video on the viewer'stelevision.

Referring now to FIG. 2, with continual reference to FIG. 1, a blockdiagram illustrating the logical structure of campaign planner 34 isshown. Campaign planner 34 is based on a database having the illustratedlogical structure. The logical structure includes at least oneadvertising campaign 40. Each advertising campaign 40 belongs to anadvertiser 42. (For simplicity, it is assumed that there is only oneadvertiser 42. It is noted that advertiser 42 may have many campaignsand there may be many advertisers having many advertising campaigns.)

Advertising campaign 40 has one or more ads 44. As such, each ad 44belongs to an advertiser 42 and is in an advertising campaign 40 of thatadvertiser. Advertiser 42 pays for its ads 44 based on the number oftimes its ads are viewed by viewers 16 and 18 during the presentation ofrequested videos to the viewers. Each ad 44 has a cost that is chargedto a budget of advertising campaign 40. The ad cost is the product ofthe time duration of ad 44 and the per-unit time cost associated withadvertising campaign 40. In addition to the campaign budget, advertisingcampaign 40 has start and end dates during which the ads of theadvertising campaign may run.

Each ad 44 in advertising campaign 40 has an associated run frequency.The run frequency expresses the relative frequency with which the ads inadvertising campaign 40 may run for viewers 16 and 18. Further, each ad44 in advertising campaign 40 has an associated set of day parts 46which constrains the time of day that the ads may run for viewers 16 and18.

As indicated above, each available video 48 has content that satisfiesat least one content category 50. Advertising campaign 40 is associatedwith at least one content category 50. Videos 48 having content thatsatisfies the content categories 50 associated with advertising campaign40 are eligible for being presented with ads 44 of the advertisingcampaign. The rules may be defined such that the content of a video mustfall into at least one of, a subset or group of, or all of the contentcategories 50 associated with advertising campaign 40 in order to beeligible for being presented with ads 44 of the advertising campaign.

Each video 48 is associated with a specified number of ad avails (i.e.,a specified number of ads which may run with the video). When viewer 16decides to watch are quested video 48, ad selector 36 selects ads 44 tobe played for that viewing of that video based on the defined rules withthe number of ads being selected such that the number of ad avails arefilled.

Campaign planner 34 enables advertising campaigns 40 to be defined interms of geography, demographics, and the content in which ads 44 willappear. Advertising campaigns 40 are defined using information which canbe described as “who they are what they watch” and may be defined basedon: 1) geographic and demographic information corresponding to thehouseholds of the viewers; and 2) the type of content of the requestedvideo. Advertising campaigns 40 may also be defined such that some orall of ads 44 of the advertising campaigns are restricted to play duringcertain day times. The goal in associating rules with advertisingcampaigns 40 is to enable targeted ads 44 to be provided to viewers 16and 18 while VOD services are being provided to the viewers.

With respect to geographic selection, campaign planner 34 allowsadvertising campaigns 40 to be defined as to reach households within anentire designated market area (DMA) 52, households having selected ZIPcodes in the DMA, households in a set of DMAs, etc.

With respect to demographic selection, campaign planner 34 allowsadvertising campaigns 40 to be defined as to reach households havingselected demographic classifications. Demographic classification codes56 are a list of codes which classify viewer neighborhoods intoclassifications based on demographic and consumer information. Thesecodes are made available by marketers to identify audiences. Forinstance, the PRIZM® lifestyle segmentation system of ©Claritas Inc.classifies people in certain economic and demographic categories. ThePRIZM® system classifies neighborhoods into categories or clusters basedon census data, consumer surveys, and other public and private sourcesof demographic and consumer information. The clusters or codes of thePRIZM® system are defined down to the ZIP+4 level which corresponds to6-12 households. As such, demographic or neighborhood classificationcodes 56 may be defined using the PRIZM® system and/or other sources ofviewer classification information.

Campaign planner 34 allows advertising campaigns 40 to be associatedwith selected video content categories 50. Videos 48 having content thatis defined to be “in” those content categories 50 are then eligible forads 44 of advertising campaigns 40. A particular video 48 may be “in”many content categories 50. A user uses campaign planner 34 to catalog aparticular video 48 by placing the video into the content categories 50that the content of the video satisfies.

Content categories 50 are not fixed and may be added at will. Campaignplanner 34 includes a user interface that facilitates browsing by a userto list the video content that satisfies a set of content categories 50.New videos 48 that are cataloged after advertising campaign 40 isdefined may be matched up with the advertising campaign.

The special case of sponsored content is accommodated by defining aspecific content category, putting the sponsored videos in thatcategory, and only running ads 44 from the advertising campaigns 40 thatmatch the specified content category.

An advertiser may be the fractional sponsor of a particular video orseries of videos. The effect is that whenever the sponsored video isviewed, an advertising campaign 40 of the advertiser has a percentagechance of its ads 44 being run with the sponsored video. For example, if100 viewers request a sponsored video then probabilistically twenty ofthem will receive the ads 44 from the advertising campaigns 40 of theadvertiser who is sponsoring 20% of the video.

Referring now to FIG. 3, with continual reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, ablock diagram illustrating the logical structure of house database 38 ofad selector 36 is shown. As described above, when viewer 16 selects aparticular video 48 for viewing, video server 30 passes the identifierof the viewer's STB 20 and the asset identifier of the video to adselector 36. Ad selector 36 applies this gathered information againstthe rules associated with advertising campaigns 40 in order to determinewhich advertising campaigns and which ads in those advertising campaignsare to be presented during the viewing of the requested video 48 byviewer 16. Ad selector 36 then passes identifiers of the selected adsand time insertion points to video server 30. Video server 30 theninserts the selected ads into the insertion points in the requestedvideo 48 for viewer 16 to view.

Ad selector 36 uses house database 38 to determine the ZIP+4 code 54 ofthe household in which STB 20 of viewer 16 is located based on the STBidentifier. Ad selector 36 then uses house database 38 to determine ademographic classification code 56 of the household in which STB 20 islocated based on the ZIP+4 code 54 of the household. The determinedZIP+4 code 54 and the determined demographic classification code 56correspond to the household in which STB 20 is located and,consequently, likely correspond to viewer 16 of the television connectedto the STB.

The logic of ad selector 36 is as follows. First, determine all feasibleadvertising campaigns 40; second, apply factors to select one of thefeasible advertising campaigns; and third, select ads 44 from theselected advertising campaign. This logic means that all ads 44 for oneviewing are from one advertising campaign 40. This is only assumed hereto simplify discussion.

Ad selector 36 determines an advertising campaign 40 to be feasible ifit meets the following conditions. One, the advertising campaign 40 hasnot exhausted its budget. Two, the requested video 48 has content whichis in at least one content category 50 associated with the advertisingcampaign 40. Three, the advertising campaign 40 is associated with ademographic classification corresponding to the neighborhood of theresidence in which the STB 20 making the viewing request is located.Four, the advertising campaign 40 is associated with a ZIP codecorresponding to the residence in which the STB making the viewingrequest is located. Five, the advertising campaign 40 has enough ads 44to fill all of the ad avails for the requested video 48 while meetingany constraints of day parts 46.

If there are no feasible advertising campaigns 40, then either viewer 16views the requested video 48 without ads 44 or views the requested videowith public service ads and the like. If there are multiple feasibleadvertising campaigns 40 from multiple advertisers 42, then a relativepriority may be assigned between the advertisers to provide ads 44 fromthe multiple advertisers. If there is a scarcity of feasible advertisingcampaigns 40 such that the budget of the feasible advertising campaignswould be exhausted rapidly, then mechanisms may be implemented tocontrol the spending rate.

With respect to ad frequency within an advertising campaign 40, supposethere are three ads (A, B, and C) in the advertising campaign withrelative frequencies of 30, 50, and 67. Ad selector 36 then generates arandom number between 1 and 147. Ad selector 36 selects “A” if thenumber is between 1 and 30; selects “B” if the number is between 31 and80; and selects “C” if the number is between 81 and 147.

For billing and reporting purposes, video server 30 captures a record ofeach ad event. The ad event record includes identification of the adprovided to the viewer, identification of the requested video, therunning time duration of the ad, the date and time of viewing, and ZIPand ZIP+4 codes of the household. The records are exported to areporting and billing application.

In summary, the method and system for planning and running VODadvertising in accordance with the present invention affords advertisersa combination of capabilities of known advertising forms with novelcapabilities. These capabilities include matching video content with aviewer audience. An advertiser can select a mix of content designed toappeal to a particular viewer audience. Advertisers can buy a piece ofan ad hit. As such, an advertiser with a small budget can buy part of apopular video by buying a percentage of the viewer audience. The ads mayflexible as a VOD is not constrained to rigid time slots as in broadcastadvertising. An advertiser may buy all of the spots in some viewing of aparticular video, thus enabling ads in different spots to be related toeach other and combined for effect. A particular demographic may bereached as the present invention combines the selection by content I daypart of broadcast television with the precise geographic I demographicclassification delivery of direct mail. Advertisers know exactly what ishappening with their ads as precise counts of every ad play may beprovided.

While embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated anddescribed, it is not intended that these embodiments illustrate anddescribe all possible forms of the present invention. Rather, the wordsused in the specification are words of description rather thanlimitation, and it is understood that various changes may be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

1. A method comprising: selecting, from a plurality of sponsors, basedon a first predetermined audience segment corresponding to at least onefirst sponsor, and based on first demographic information correspondingto a first geographic region, the at least one first sponsor to sponsora program; selecting, from the plurality of sponsors, based on a secondpredetermined audience segment corresponding to at least one secondsponsor, and based on second demographic information corresponding to asecond geographic region, the at least one second sponsor to sponsor theprogram; causing a first computing device in the first geographic regionto output the program and at least one first content item associatedwith the at least one first sponsor; and causing a second computingdevice in the second geographic region to output the program and atleast one second content item associated with the at least one secondsponsor.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining,based on a unique identifier of the first computing device, the firstgeographic region.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:determining household information for a household associated with thefirst computing device, wherein selecting the at least one first sponsoris further based on the household information.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising: determining preference information for a userassociated with the first computing device, wherein selecting the atleast one first sponsor is further based on the preference information.5. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining the firstgeographic region based on a ZIP+4 code associated with a user of thefirst computing device.
 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:determining, based on census block data corresponding to the firstgeographic region, the first demographic information.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: determining a priority of the at least onesecond sponsor, wherein selecting the at least one second sponsor isfurther based on the priority.
 8. One or more non-transitorycomputer-readable media storing instructions that, when executed, cause:selecting, from a plurality of sponsors, based on a first predeterminedaudience segment corresponding to at least one first sponsor, and basedon first demographic information corresponding to a first geographicregion, the at least one first sponsor to sponsor a program; selecting,from the plurality of sponsors, based on a second predetermined audiencesegment corresponding to at least one second sponsor, and based onsecond demographic information corresponding to a second geographicregion, the at least one second sponsor to sponsor the program; causinga first computing device in the first geographic region to output theprogram and at least one first content item associated with the at leastone first sponsor; and causing a second computing device in the secondgeographic region to output the program and at least one second contentitem associated with the at least one second sponsor.
 9. Thecomputer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the instructions, whenexecuted, further cause: determining, based on a unique identifier ofthe first computing device, the first geographic region.
 10. Thecomputer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the instructions, whenexecuted, further cause: determining household information for ahousehold associated with the first computing device, wherein selectingthe at least one first sponsor is further based on the householdinformation.
 11. The computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein theinstructions, when executed, further cause: determining preferenceinformation for a user associated with the first computing device,wherein selecting the at least one first sponsor is further based on thepreference information.
 12. The computer-readable media of claim 8,wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause: determining thefirst geographic region based on a ZIP+4 code associated with a user ofthe first computing device.
 13. The computer-readable media of claim 8,wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause: determining,based on census block data corresponding to the first geographic region,the first demographic information.
 14. The computer-readable media ofclaim 8, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause:determining a priority of the at least one second sponsor, whereinselecting the at least one second sponsor is further based on thepriority.
 15. An apparatus comprising: one or more processors; andmemory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or moreprocessors, cause the apparatus to: select, from a plurality ofsponsors, based on a first predetermined audience segment correspondingto at least one first sponsor, and based on first demographicinformation corresponding to a first geographic region, the at least onefirst sponsor to sponsor a program; select, from the plurality ofsponsors, based on a second predetermined audience segment correspondingto at least one second sponsor, and based on second demographicinformation corresponding to a second geographic region, the at leastone second sponsor to sponsor the program; cause a first computingdevice in the first geographic region to output the program and at leastone first content item associated with the at least one first sponsor;and cause a second computing device in the second geographic region tooutput the program and at least one second content item associated withthe at least one second sponsor.
 16. The apparatus of claim 15, whereinthe instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, furthercause the apparatus to: determine, based on a unique identifier of thefirst computing device, the first geographic region.
 17. The apparatusof claim 15, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or moreprocessors, further cause the apparatus to: determine householdinformation for a household associated with the first computing device,wherein selecting the at least one first sponsor is further based on thehousehold information.
 18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein theinstructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further causethe apparatus to: determine preference information for a user associatedwith the first computing device, wherein selecting the at least onefirst sponsor is further based on the preference information.
 19. Theapparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions, when executed by theone or more processors, further cause the apparatus to: determine thefirst geographic region based on a ZIP+4 code associated with a user ofthe first computing device.
 20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein theinstructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further causethe apparatus to: determine, based on census block data corresponding tothe first geographic region, the first demographic information.